Liberians Implore U.S. to Send Troops

Published 8:00 pm, Wednesday, July 2, 2003

Associated Press Writer

Thousands of Liberians marched behind an American flag Thursday, imploring President Bush to send troops to help stanch years of bloodshed in their west African nation.

About 2,000 demonstrators walked to the U.S. Embassy chanting slogans praising Bush, whose administration Thursday repeated its call for Liberia President Charles Taylor to resign. Taylor, indicted by the United Nations for war crimes, is battling a three-year insurgency to unseat him from power.

A few demonstrators stoned cars and brawled with police patrolling the rally, but there were no immediate reports of arrests or injuries. Across town, 300 Taylor supporters said his departure would set a precedent for Washington to topple any African leader it dislikes.

As the anti-Taylor crowd shouted, "No more Taylor! We want Bush! We want peace!," demonstrator Andrew N'golo expressed his desperation in the wake of recent fighting between Taylor loyalists and rebels.

"We are prepared to give our bodies as living sacrifices if that's what it takes to bring peace to Liberia," N'golo said.

Rebels last month launched their strongest-ever offensive against Taylor, with the main insurgent group eventually laying siege to Monrovia, the capital city of 1 million residents and hundreds of thousands of refugees.

The fighting killed hundreds of people.

In Washington, defense officials said the U.S. military commander in Europe has been ordered to begin planning for possible American intervention. The options being discussed ranged from sending no troops to sending thousands, defense officials said.

National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice said Bush has made no decision on how the United States will address the Liberian crisis. But she reiterated Thursday that Taylor "needs to leave because Charles Taylor is the problem."

"And Charles Taylor is, by the way, not just a problem for Liberia; he's a problem for the region," Rice said. "One of the reasons that the president is concerned about the situation in Liberia is that Charles Taylor has been a source of insurrection and insurgency in surrounding countries."

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan would like to see the United States lead a multinational peacekeeping force. African nations have offered 3,000 troops for any deployment.

Secretary of State Colin Powell said he was consulting the United Nations and leaders in Africa, and Bush's National Security Council struggled with the issue for a third day.

Powell spoke of "a severe humanitarian crisis emerging" in Liberia as well as the safety of American diplomats there, and said, "All of these factors are being taken into consideration."

On Thursday, former President Carter also said the United States should intervene in Liberia.

"U.S. leadership can and should extend to the deployment of U.S. forces," Carter said in a statement released by his foundation, the Atlanta-based Carter Center. "American leadership now is critical to create the security on which long-term stability for Liberia and the region can be built."

Sporadic fighting has continued despite a June 17 cease-fire agreement between the warring parties in this country founded in the 19th century by freed American slaves.

Rebels began fighting three years ago to oust Taylor, who won contested elections and took the presidency in 1997 after the end of a 1989-1996 civil war that he launched.

On June 4, a U.N.-backed court indicted Taylor, whose gun trafficking supported Sierra Leone rebels in their vicious 10-year terror campaign, where rebel atrocities included hacking off victims' limbs. He also is accused of plundering that nation's rich diamond reserves.